For Christ didn’t send me to baptize, but to preach the Good News—and not with clever speech, for fear that the cross of Christ would lose its power. (1 Cor. 1:17 NLT)
I’ve always had a lot of stories to tell. Stories of what God has done in my life. Stories of what I’d done in my life before God ruled it. Funny stories, sad stories, outrageous but true stories– these personal tales all came in handy whenever I taught at Sola Dei or was invited to speak at venues outside of my regular area of ministry. They became a highlight of my teaching time.
And therein lies the problem.
One day, as I was preparing to speak at an event, I came to the sobering realization that I had exhausted my supply of stories and had none left to share. I panicked, wracked my brain, tried to squeeze just one more anecdote out of it…
I couldn’t hide from it anymore– The LORD convicted me in His still, small voice: ”It shouldn’t be about your stories in the first place.”
Personal stories and anecdotes can make for great illustrations of Biblical truths, but when they take the focus off The Story– The Greatest Story Ever Told, the Good News, the Gospel of Jesus Christ– the message of Christ crucified loses power. Jesus doesn’t need our help to hype up or spin His message, “for the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.” (Heb. 4:12 NLT)
This is not to say that we shouldn’t share personal stories when we teach Bible studies or share our faith with others, because our own experiences often make for excellent testimonies and help illustrate Biblical truths; we just need to make sure that the stories point to God and testify to who He is without putting ourselves in the spotlight. I struggled with what this meant until a mentor gave me a bit of sage advice: “It’s all right to share stories as long as you’re not the hero of them.” Though we might not be the hero, we don’t need to be the villain, either.
Perhaps our role in The Story is to simply be the helpless victim who gets rescued by The Hero.
For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. (1 Cor. 1:18 NLT)
